The Taylor Library contains over 30,000 printed books. To find a book, you’ll need to use one of the University’s online catalogues (instructions below). If you have difficulty any in finding your book, either in the catalogue or on the shelves, please come and ask one of the librarians for help. A key to the classification scheme, along with the library floorplans, is given on the library layout page. Other information for library users is available on the library information page.

Search the catalogues

All books in the Taylor Library can be found on the online University catalogues, including LibrarySearch and Newton, which can be accessed via the Libraries Gateway from any computer. These catalogues should be consulted first when looking for a book. Items can be searched by entering keywords (e.g. the author’s surname plus significant words from the title), or entering information such as the classmark or publisher. When searching for the title of an article or chapter, rather than the book title, it is recommended that readers use LibrarySearch+.

Restricting your search

If, for example, you want to find a copy of A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, you might begin by entering the following keywords into LibrarySearch. 

 

 

 

 

With Newton, you have the option to restrict your search to a particular library before entering any search terms; with LibrarySearch, by contrast, you are given the option to restrict your search only after you have entered your first search terms. Thus, when you first enter a keyword in LibrarySearch, results will include all records that contain the words you have entered in every library in the University. If you wish to search for books in the Taylor Library alone, therefore, it is important to make sure that you subsequently restrict the search to Corpus Christi College by selecting this location from the drop-down menu that is below and to the right of the search box (see below). Once you click on the location you want, the search is performed automatically in the library that you have selected.

Classmarks

Once you have found a record, the most important piece of information to note about the book is its classmark. The classmark is a string of numbers and letters that is found on the spine of the book, and it tells you where on the shelves to find the book. Using LibrarySearch or Newton, classmarks are given at the bottom of the record where ‘holding libraries’ are shown. A record can be shared by many libraries in Cambridge (because many copies of the same book may be present in different libraries), so it is important that you find the classmark for the library you are interested in. An example of a record found using LibrarySearch is given below. The classmarks (sequences of numbers and letters) are given after the library names – for example, ‘W.4.DIC’ following the name ‘Taylor Library’ below.

 

 

 

 

 

An ‘expanded’ record can be found by clicking on the libraries listed in the record. If you then scroll to the bottom of the record, further information about individual copies is given. Working with the above record, for example, the following information can be obtained. Note that the availability of individual books is given (i.e. whether they have been borrowed or not).

 

 

 

 

All classmarks in the Taylor Library conform to the following pattern:

                                                                                   W.4.DIC

The initial letter indicates the broad subject area (W is is English Literature); the following numeral indicates the subdivision (4 contains the works of individual authors); the final string of letters are the first letters of the author’s surname (e.g. DIC for Charles Dickens). Books are shelved alphabetically within subdivisions according to the final string of letters in the classmark.

The location of the main subject divisions is given in the library layout pages.

Hard copy vs ebook

If you are searching for ebooks, then you must use LibrarySearch, as new ebook titles are not listed in Newton. More information on ebooks is given on the online resources pages.

Journals

Multiple titles of ejournals are available to members of the University and can be found by entering key terms in LibrarySearch (but not in Newton). See online resources for information about accessing ejournal content.

The Taylor Library also subscribes to a limited number of print journals in both the sciences and humanities, which can be searched using LibrarySearch and Newton. A full list of titles is given on the journals page.